Falcon Report

Falcons LISTEN: How to Judge Coach Arthur Smith?

Locked On Falcons: Was Matt Ryan Flawless in Week 4? With Special Guest Allen Strk

Jeremy Brener

Atlanta Falcons head coach Arthur Smith has struggled to gain his footing as a first-time head coach, but then again, so have most rookie head coaches in the NFL.

Other than the Los Angeles Chargers' Brandon Staley, no rookie head coach has won more than one game, including Smith.

Smith experienced tremendous success as the Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator the past two seasons, but it hasn't quite followed him to Atlanta.

In a Week 4 loss to Washington, Smith is being criticized for his play-calling on a crucial fourth-quarter drive where the Falcons held a two-point lead, but opted to run the ball with a struggling Mike Davis instead of Cordarrelle Patterson, who scored three touchdowns during Sunday's defeat.

The fourth quarter has been a deciding factor in each of Atlanta's last three games, but Smith has only been able to salvage a win in one of those contests.

Coaching comes down to two things: putting your team in position to win, and executing the right plan once the game is on the line. Smith has done a decent job putting his team in winnable scenarios, but hasn't quite cracked the code to bring it home.

Smith has time, considering he's a rookie, but his in terms of heat from critics, the 2021 clock may be running out soon if he doesn't fix it quickly.

READ MORE: Falcons' Spiraling Season Still Salvageable?

On this episode of "Locked On Falcons," host Aaron Freeman invites Allen Strk (The Falcoholic) to recap the Falcons' Week 4 loss to Washington and discuss their thoughts on the first month of Smith's tenure.

They discuss Matt Ryan's "flawless" performance against Washington, Cordarrelle Patterson's usage, and ways the Falcons can get more out of their defense moving forward before assessing Smith's play-calling and impact on the team through four weeks of the 2021 season.

Aaron deals with all that and more on this episode of "Locked On Falcons." For more podcasts and information, join us here.

CONTINUE READING: Falcons Draft Watch: QB Malik Willis is on Fire

Published
Jeremy Brener
JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.

Home/News